Rodgers silent on Balotelli, hails 'outstanding' Liverpool

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers felt his side were "outstanding throughout" in their goalless draw at Arsenal.

Published

24 August 2015

Brendan Rodgers was left wondering how Liverpool failed to secure a rare Premier League win at Arsenal on Monday and refused to shed any light on reports that Mario Balotelli is set to rejoin Milan.

Philippe Coutinho struck the crossbar after only two minutes and then had a shot brilliantly tipped against the post by Petr Cech as Liverpool dominated the first half in a goalless draw at the Emirates Stadium.

Cech, who endured a poor home debut against West Ham, also made an outstanding save to somehow keep out Christian Benteke's close-range shot when the Belgium striker should have scored.

Arsenal were unfortunate when Aaron Ramsey had a goal wrongly ruled out for offside in the first half and Arsene Wenger's side improved after the break, but Liverpool stood firm to continue their unbeaten start and keep a third clean sheet.

But Rodgers felt his side should have made it three top-flight wins out of three and secure only their second victory in 13 visits to the Emirates Stadium.

He told Sky Sports: "I thought we were outstanding all way through, first half defensively we were well organised and a real threat going forward. Overall we kept a really good clean sheet and I'm disappointed not to get a win.

"I think both goalkeepers made good saves. Simon [Mignolet] is an outstanding goalkeeper. He's made one or two, and Petr Cech as well.

"We've probably seen a bit of how the team is growing. It was a real good game of football, all we were missing was the goal."

Out-of-favour striker Balotelli is said to be set to undergo a medical at Milan with a view to a season-long loan move back to Serie A, but Rodgers was unwilling to comment on transfer activity.

The Liverpool boss said: "There's nothing to add really on any transfers, there's nothing for me to say."